The intoxicating scent of blood. The feel of it being smeared across your cheeks, some of it even dripping down your chin. And best of all... the taste. On the night you nearly killed someone, that was all you could focus on.
"...[Name], please..."
In the darkness, a voice quietly choked out those words. It was a desperate cry, weak and hoarse. They'd been calling out to you like this for several minutes on end, but you were too entranced to take note of it. You just kept on drinking from their neck, relishing in the sweet flavor that enveloped your throat and tongue.
If your parents hadn't intervened when they had, you would have become a murderer.
"What in the world are you doing?! Stop it right now!"
Before you could make sense of what was happening, you were being pulled away from your prey. All you could do was thrash about furiously. In your present state, you were no better than a feral animal. All logic and reason had left your mind a long time ago. What remained was nothing but hunger and selfish desire.
It wasn't until someone slapped you across the face, hard, that you finally came back to your senses. At first, everything was fuzzy, but eventually, the images stopped dancing in front of your eyes, and you were able to take in the scene.
A friend of yours, a rather close friend, as a matter of fact, was laying helplessly on the ground, blood staining the length of their neck. A good deal of it had even soaked into the front of their shirt. They weren't moving either. You could barely even tell that they were breathing, what with how subtly their chest was moving up and down.
Eyes wide, you slowly patted the sides of your face, fingers coming back coated in crimson. Their blood, and it was all over you. So much blood... it was too much. You did this? You took this much blood from them?
"Wait," you started, but it was too late to bother making excuses for what you'd done. Your friend was lifted up by someone and taken out of the room in a hurry, no doubt to receive immediate treatment. Their body looked limp in the arms of the person carrying them. If you hadn't known better, you might've thought they were already a corpse.
And you had no one but yourself to blame for it.
"You foolish girl!" It was your mother, the same person who'd slapped you in order to bring you back to reality. She grabbed hold of your shoulders, teeth viciously grit from anger. "Do you have any idea what you've done? How could you possibly lose control and do that to your own friend? You nearly killed them! They might die because of you!"
You blinked, tears slowly slipping down your cheeks. "I... I didn't mean to—"
"No! There's no excuse! I've told you time and time again not to get carried away. Not to let your thirst for blood cloud your reason. What am I meant to say to that child's family? They've been devoted retainers of ours for countless generations. You've single-handedly destroyed the trust we worked so hard to build up!"
She clenched her fist, looking as though she wanted to hit you again, but unlike you, she was able to control herself. Then, she stood up, expression devoid of any emotion.
"This was the last straw," she said coldly. "You never learn, [Name]. Us vampires are more powerful than we even realize. You cannot simply take what you want, whenever you want it. There are limits to your greed and gluttony. As your mother, I cannot continue to excuse such irresponsible behavior."
"So... what are you trying to say?" you gaped. It was all too much to process at once. It hadn't even really sunk in that you'd nearly killed your friend. You still couldn't believe that you were capable of such a thing.
Your mother turned away from you. "Enough is enough. You haven't corrected your mistakes after all this time. I've given up on trying to get through to you. As for the severity of your crimes... you will be punished accordingly."
She left without explaining any further. Still shocked beyond belief, your entire body sagged. Once again, you touched the sides of your face, marveling at how much blood was staining your skin. It wasn't normal for a human to lose this much blood. It wasn't normal for anyone to lose this much blood.
Your mother was right. What you'd done was disgusting and inexcusable. Whatever the punishment was, you wholly deserved it, and you would accept it without protest.
At least, that was what you'd thought.
"Banishment?!" you cried out, panicked. "I understand I committed a grave mistake, but surely that's taking it too far!"
You stood in front of your entire family. The king and queen, your mother and father, were seated at the forefront, staring down at you with remorseless eyes. Everyone else had gathered too—your many siblings, your uncles and aunts, your cousins. Even your grandparents, who were normally nowhere to be found, had made an appearance for your judgment day.
"It has already been decided," you father glowered. "No one else in this family loses control of themselves the way you do. Time and time again, you allow your craving for blood to render you blind to the suffering of others. As the rulers of this kingdom, we cannot allow such conduct to go unchecked, even if you are our own kin."
You could feel your entire body shaking. "But banishment... just what am I supposed to do? Where am I supposed to even go? I'll take any other punishment! Just not this! I'm afraid. Please... mother, father, everyone... don't get rid of me. Don't make me be on my own."
"It isn't a permanent solution," your mother sighed. "But for a while, this much is necessary. We cannot continue to be soft with you. You'll learn the consequences for your actions the hard way. Once you've matured and learned to act in a manner befitting your position, you may return."
"But I—"
"There is no room for arguing. We've already made up our minds."
Tears continued to well up in your eyes. Of course. You understood the weight of a life, and how close you'd come to nearly extinguishing it. But you still couldn't help but be afraid. You were only fourteen years old. To be cast away like this, left to fend all for yourself... it wasn't such an easy thing to stomach.
So, this was it, then. This was the last time you'd see your family, for god-knows how long. Until they somehow decided you were worthy of returning home.
While you wiped at your eyes and kept from sobbing outright, a few cloaked figures stepped forward. You didn't recognize any of them. These people weren't from your family. In that case... who were they?
"Mages," your mother answered calmly, having all but read your mind. "We brought them here in order to carry out your banishment."
"Why would you need mages to do something like that?"
No sooner had you asked the question, you felt a horrible sense of dread, even worse than what you'd experienced thus far. The mages made a circle around you and ignored your pleading expression, opting instead to pull out some crystals from their cloaks and extend them towards you.
"Mother, father," you trembled. "What... what's happening?"
Not just your parents, but all of your family members looked solemn. They clearly knew what was about to come next.
"It is a fairly complicated spell," your mother eventually said. "A large amount of magic is needed to transport someone to a different world."
Wait, what? A different world?
You understood now what that horrible sense of dread was. You weren't just being banished from your home. You were being banished from the only world you'd ever known.
"Please!" you cried out, trying to rush forward as a last-ditch effort. It didn't work, though. The magic tethered you in place, making your entire body feel as though it had turned to lead. You couldn't move. You could only squeeze your head as the gravity above you more than doubled, forcing you flat to the ground.
The last thing you saw was the grave look your parents gave you.
"Remember, [Name]. Remember this feeling, and never take a life for granted ever again."
Light surged before your eyes. It was a foreign, disorienting feeling, and the scream you let out died in the back of your throat. It felt like everything was happening in the span of an inhale, but somehow painfully slowly as well. Whatever the case, you were helpless to do a damn thing about it.
After what was either a second or a whole eternity, you finally came to.
"Miss! Hey, miss! What's the matter with you?!"
You peeled your eyes open, letting out a soft groan. Some middle-aged man was hovering over your fallen frame, lightly poking you on the shoulder every few seconds. Based on his expression, he was concerned, bewildered, or some combination of the two.
And he wasn't the only one.
You quickly realized you were surrounded by a group of people, all of whom were staring down at you in visible confusion. Apparently, you were still lying flat on the ground, but in the middle of what looked to be some sort of road. Not only that, but there were strange contraptions all around you. Machines with four wheels that were travelling along the road, although most of them had stopped because you were dead in the middle of it.
Wearily, you pulled yourself to your feet. The group of people kept on pestering you and asking if you were alright, but you ignored them and breezed past. You needed to get your head on straight, but a quick look at your surroundings was really all you needed to confirm your worst fears.
This definitely wasn't the world you were used to. Your own family had just kicked you out with no regard for your wellbeing, although you supposed that was the price to pay for the sins you'd committed. Crying about it more wouldn't accomplish anything. You had no time to wallow in self-pity either.
Now, then. What the fuck were you supposed to do next?